Scrunchies by Elena!!

 Hello! Hope all my blog readers are doing well on this cold winter day! We can't wait for spring to arrive. However, winter is definitely a great time for getting crafts done. While I was busy making my recent simple card stash for my customer, Elena was down in the ladycave (our craft room) with me making scrunchies. She first watched a video on how to crochet them and made some of those, then took it up a notch and watched a video on how to sew them!  They turned out so great and its so fun to pick out the fabric and colors we want for the scrunchies. Here are some she made in one day!

The top row are the ones she crocheted. And then the rest are sewed with strips of fabric.  Three of them match homemade masks we made earlier.   Here's close up of the one she crocheted. The yarn has a velvet feel to it and sparkles.  Its gorgeous. 

She sewed this pink camo one for me

and this one for Valentines Day!

Elena just recently bought some new fabric of different textures including velvet and satin to use for her next batch of scrunchies.  I can't wait to see how these turn out.  She is thinking maybe she could sell these to earn a little spending money for her crafts and wish list.   I definitely would pay for these, wouldn't you?! Especially when you can pick out  the fabric color/pattern!  We are thinking of working together to make matching masks and scrunchies!

Stay warm everyone! 

-Nicole

Stash of Simple Cards

 Hello Stampers and Friends,

Today I made a bunch of simple note cards for a customer. She wanted cards for various occasions including Thank you's, birthday, and sympathy.   I was inspired by the simple design of the recent cards I made so I decided to make a stash using the same basic simple design and utilizing my designer series papers (DSP) since I have collected quite a few of those!  Some are retired DSP and some are current, but all are from Stampin Up.  All have a base of Thick Whisper White cardstock. I used the envelope die to decorate the back flap of the envelope with the corresponding paper.  The sentiment layer is propped up with dimensional for a extra depth to the layers.  I love this idea so much I want to make a stash for myself to have handy for when an occasion pops up. It was really simple to make and did not take long.   Here are the cards I just mailed off to my customer.  Hope she loves them!

                               

If you are a stamper and have any questions about these cards, drop me a message below or email me at bloxiegirl@yahoo.com. 
If you would like to purchase homemade cards from me, just let me know!  Check out my Card Gallery page for ideas. I can customize the cards to your needs.  
Thanks for reading my post!

-Nicole

New Additions to the Bloxom Zoo!!

 Hello,  I have some news to share!!!   We decided to get some pet rats! With my work hours at the hospital cut significantly due to the pandemic I had some free time on my hands.  Elena and Levi have loved hearing my stories about my pet rat Pepe that I had when Graham and I first got married 20 years ago. They've been asking for years when we can have one, so with this new free time on my hands plus the realization that they will only be home for about 4-5 more years before they're off to college, I decided this was a good time!   

We did some research and quickly found that rats purchased from a breeder are much healthier and friendlier.  Also found that rats are very social and do not like to be alone. Its recommended to get at least a pair. We found a good breeder in NC and picked out 3 little guys, one each for me, Levi & Elena. On Sat Jan 9th we made the road trip to pick up our little one month old guys.  The kids have named them Snap, Crackle and Pop! 

Once home, we got them settled into their new cage.  It is very large & tall and on wheels so we can move them around easily.  It also can be divided in half with a top portion and a bottom portion.  For now we are keeping them in just the top portion while they are babies. When they get bigger, we can open up the bottom for them too.   2 out of our 3 cats are very interested in the rats.  One of them kept jumping on the top of the cage so we had to a bin upside down on the cage to keep him off lol!  We are training the 2 cats to leave them alone and they are starting to get the idea. Thank goodness our dog and the 3rd cat don't seem interested at all!  Here is a pic of their big home:

They've been home week now and are adjusting pretty well.  They are still a little scared as they are babies.  They will take food out of our hands and let us hold them briefly.  Once they are more settled, we can take them out for some play time!  They are so cute and so much fun!  

Thanks for reading this post! 

-Nicole

Sympathy Cards with Dandy Garden Suite

 Recently I purchased Stampin Up's Dandy Garden Suite and today I made some simple sympathy cards with this new suite. I love the dragonfly stamp and punch in this suite which I made that the focal point of the cards.  These cards are for my cousins and aunt who recently loss their dad and husband.  I like to think of the dragonfly as my uncle flying off to a better place yet keeping an eye on his family.   

Here are the cards- I used the same simple monochromatic design for all 3, using a different color for each.  Each envelope was stamped with a corresponding stamp of dragonflies.

From left to right, the colors are Blackberry Bliss, Misty Moonlight, and Mossy Meadow. Here's a close up with the dragonfly.

Hoping these cards bring a small token of comfort that we are thinking of them and remembering the good times with Uncle Bob. 

If you are a stamper and have any questions about these cards, drop me a message below or email me at bloxiegirl@yahoo.com. 
If you would like to purchase homemade cards from me, just let me know!  Check out my Card Gallery page for ideas. I can customize the cards to your needs.  
Thanks for reading my post!

-Nicole

January Birthday Cards

 Happy New Year!!!  I am so glad its 2021 and 2020 is now in the past.   I am hoping for a much better year and for the end of the pandemic.  

Here are some recent birthday cards I have made for January birthdays!!  

This one was made for one of Levi's friends who loves the outdoors and hunting.  I used a retired Stampin Up (SU) stamp and layered with SU's Always Artichoke and More Mustard cardstock. It was very quick and easy. 

This stamp set is for my friend. She loves color and flowers so hopefully she loves this card.  I used the new Stampin Up set called Simply Succulent for this and then colored the flowers with my Stampin Up Blends and Copic markers.  This card took a little more time for the coloring but I find the coloring to be so relaxing. The paper is Pool Party cardstock and the purple is Purple Posy Designer Series Paper. I recently discovered a new way to dress up my cards by using the envelope decorative die to dress up the back flap of the envelope! I love the coordinated look it gives! 

And this card is obviously for a February birthday card! This card was made for a customer who wanted a fun Valentines themed birthday card for a cat lover! So I used a collection of cats punched out of Valentines designer series paper put and put them down in a random collection!  I love cats too so this card was really fun for me to make! 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

If you are a stamper and have any questions about these cards, drop me a message below or email me at bloxiegirl@yahoo.com. 
If you would like to purchase homemade cards from me, just let me know!  Check out my Card Gallery page for ideas. I can customize the cards to your needs.  
Thanks for reading my post!

-Nicole

My Christmas Gift from Elena!

 Merry Christmas Y'all!!!

Just wanted to share my Christmas gift from Elena which also showcases her fabulous crocheting!! She is going to town with her crocheting skills.   A while back, Elena made a crochet pillow for me that goes with my bedspread and even then colors in my living room.  

I loved the pillow so much that she decided to make me a throw blanket to match since I am always cold!  She made this on her own and wrapped it and put it under the tree for me!  Here is my blanket!  

It goes perfect with my pillow and keeps me warm!

And thats not all!! She even made a matching throw blanket for my little Leo!!  

Which he absolutely loves too! Its like he knew it was just for him!

He will even wear it like a robe.  Say hello to His Royal Highness Leo the Lion!

Leo loves to take cat naps on his very own blanket

Here is me and Leo with our blankets together. What a great gift from Elena! I will treasure it forever!

Hope your Christmas was special too!

Love,

-Nicole

Blankets with Crochet Borders

 Hello, I am expanding my blog to include other craft inspirations and projects my daughter and I make. She and I both love trying new crafts and techniques. Sometimes they go well and other times not so well but its always fun to try something new. Sometimes I try a new craft but it takes a few tries to get the hang of it.... like crocheting.

I was inspired to learn how to crochet from my sister in law, Ginger.   Ginger taught me how to crochet for the first time way back in 1999 when Graham and I were still dating.  I started 2 blankets then and both of them got put aside as life got busy after getting married, moving around with the military, and having kids.  I still have them unfinished in a bag. I always planned to finish them someday but had forgotten how to crochet.  

When we visited with Ginger in the summer of 2019, she gifted the kids and I with crocheted blankets she made for us.  She made Levi and Elena each their own blanket and for my blanket, she added a crocheted ruffle border to blanket she purchased. 

the kids blankets

My blanket from Ginger

Ginger explained that this is a quick way to personalize a blanket versus crocheting an entire blanket.  This inspired me to try crocheting again! It didnt seem quite so intimidating as crocheting an entire full sized blanket! Ginger had to teach me all over again since it had been 20 years since she taught me the first time! Luckily, she didnt mind and was very patient with me.  We got a small baby blanket and I chose some yarn to make a border.  She got me started and I wrote down all the instructions  to continue the blanket after we went our seperate ways again after vacation.   I worked on my little blanket here and there and finally finished it 6 months later.  Here's my first completed blanket!!

I was so proud of it, I ended up just keeping it for myself.  I use it often as a little lap blanket or put it around my shoulders when I'm reading.  

Fast forward another 6 months: During covid quarantine, Elena asked me if I could teach her how to make the crocheted ruffle border.  This was a little challenging because while Im right handed, Elena is left handed so I decided the best way to teach her was for both of us to make a blanket at the same time. I bought materials to make a blanket for my son and she picked a blanket and yarn for herself to go with her room decor.  I dug out my notes that I had written down while Ginger was teaching me on vacation and had to text her to confirm a few things that I had forgotten in just 6 months!! Then Elena and I started off making the baby blankets together.  Due to her being left handed, it was a frustrating start, but I encouraged her to stick with it and she got the hang of it quickly and was soon giving me tips!!!  She really is a natural at crocheting and I feel like she gets that from her Aunt Ginger!!   

                                                               Here is Elena's blanket:

Can you tell how proud she is?! She did such a great job and finished well before I did!  Then she was giving me tips on how to finish my blanket!! Here is my blanket that I made for Levi:

I havent crocheted since but now I can have Elena help me whenever Im ready for another project as she has continued to crochet. I will post some more of her projects soon.  

Thank you Aunt Ginger for teaching us how to crochet!! Sorry it took me 20 years to learn it!!

Thank you for reading my blog! Please contact me at bloxiegirl@yahoo.com with any questions.

Nicole